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Easily Distracted

He begins by chasing a grasshopper and ends up on the swing. While he swings high in the air he notices a slide, and quickly commands his mother to stop pushing him and jumps off the swing to make his way to the slide. After zipping down the plastic slope, he sees a dog on the sidewalk and runs over to pet the dog's soft fur. He turns his head when the dog licks his face and notices a dandelion sitting high in the grass. He grabs the dandelion, blows the puff into the air and points at the white cloud nestled high in the sky. He hears a noise and turns to see his yellow dump truck sitting in a pile of sand and runs to push it around the play area.

Sometimes I feel like a toddler boy at a park. I too am easily distracted.

My plan for the morning includes spending time in God's Word. I want to make it a priority because I know that my soul craves plugging into God's power each day. I don't want to suffer the results on not spending time with God and missing out on the lessons that He wants to teach me.

However.

I get the kids to school and start a load of laundry. I open my Bible, and peruse a quick devotional, and remember that I have to send an e-mail. While I am sending the e-mail, the dryer buzzes, alerting me that the whites are finished drying and need to be folded.

As I am folding the laundry I see my Bible sitting open, ready to be absorbed, ready to instruct me. I finish folding the clothes and decide to then place the piles in the appropriate rooms instead of reading my Bible. I again remember the importance of starting my day in God’s Word and resist the temptation to turn on the television to watch a morning show. While I am reading God's Word, my hands feel dry and I go to the bathroom cupboard to squirt a drop of lotion onto my hands. I look in the cupboard and notice that it needs to be organized, and that some old toiletries need to be tossed into the garbage. I stop, and remember my Bible.

I sit down again and reread what I just read because the thoughts and words have quickly escaped me. I begin again, asking God to help me stay focused on Him and to resist the temptation to do other, less important chores.

The washer buzzes, I ignore it.

My mobile phone alerts me with a new text message, I ignore it.

My throat feels dry, I ignore it.

“Speak to me God. What do you want me to learn today?”

I read two verses and a short devotional in 10 minutes. Ten minutes. I felt filled. I felt ready to begin my day.

I focused, and as a result, I ignored the temptation to be distracted and a verse spoke to me: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that everyone may receive what is due them for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”

I am accountable for the life I live on earth, me, and no one else. My life, my actions, my reactions, need to reflect Jesus.

“Help me Lord to love you more, and be a reflection of you.”

Satan loves to distract us from God. He smiles when the dryer buzzer goes off and we remember that we have to send an e-mail in the midst of our time with God. He loves when give way to a distraction and forget what we just read from God’s Word.

Comments

Anonymous said…

I had these thoughts just yesterday when I realized the wash I intended to start at 10 was still not started at 6 because the bleach container was empty and I took it to the kitchen trash that was too full to put one more thing into so I took it outside to realize the back gate was left open and the tortoise probably got out, so we had to look for her then watered the potted plants then kid needed homework help then.. then ... then. my head wanted to explode

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